Nintendo 3DS: Why ¥25,000 Is Not $300

When Nintendo announced the Japanese launch price for its new portable console on Wednesday, most outlets including this one noted that ¥25,000 is worth about $300. That’s the current exchange rate, and it’s not very good for the dollar.

But that doesn’t mean that the U.S price of the Nintendo DS will be $299.99, nor does it mean that the average Japanese person will have the sticker shock that you would if you saw a $300 price tag on a handheld game machine.

Nintendo’s prices for the last few years have converted over at about 100 yen to the dollar. The first Nintendo DS was ¥15,000 and $150. The DSi XL launched at ¥19,000 and $190. In cases where there has been a disparity, the U.S. version has been cheaper — DS Lite launched in Japan at ¥16,800 and in the U.S. for $130.

Yes, the fact that the yen has gotten stronger might have an impact on Nintendo’s pricing worldwide. Nintendo has often blamed its falling profits on the weak dollar, since so much of its money comes from U.S. sales.

But the trap that some industry watchers seem to be falling into is thinking that because ¥25,000 used to equal $250 and now equals $300, that means that 3DS costs $50 more than Wii. Fluctuations in the yen/dollar relationship don’t directly affect the average Japanese person who isn’t exchanging international currency.

Certainly it affects me. I used to spend like a sailor on shore leave when I got 120 yen to the dollar. Now I don’t buy nearly as much. The prices are all the same, but I can’t afford as many yens. Meanwhile my Japanese friends go to America and come back dressed like Tycho there.

Regardless: As Michael Pachter told Joystiq, the most likely price point for 3DS in the U.S. is $250. The thing is awesome enough to merit the price bump over your average portable, and people are used to paying more now that handheld gaming is out of the ghetto.

All that could change: Remember that most people thought Wii would be $200. But $300 carries a heavy psychological burden. Add in Nintendo’s history of lowering prices for the U.S. and $250 is more likely a ceiling than a floor.

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